Total pages in book: 129
Estimated words: 118699 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 593(@200wpm)___ 475(@250wpm)___ 396(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 118699 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 593(@200wpm)___ 475(@250wpm)___ 396(@300wpm)
Her smile faded as she thought on about the damaged land that was now hers. “Auri,” she murmured. “I’d very much appreciate it if you woke, my friend.” She’d already used a screen device to speak to the slender brunette who was the angelic Librarian and Historian; Jessamy had gone through all available records and told her that there was no record of either an Aureline or a Meher waking in the time that Zanaya Slept.
“I’m sorry, Archangel Zanaya,” Jessamy had murmured, the kindness in her eyes so innate that it was impossible to distrust her on any level, “but the records are patchy at best. To go so far back, I had to rely on the memories of the old ones who were awake during the relevant segments.”
“I expected as much.” Zanaya knew she’d Slept a long, long time.
“What I can say,” Jessamy had added, “is that because Aureline and Meher were so powerful, being your second and third, their waking would’ve been noticed. The Cadre doesn’t like to leave such powerful angels to do as they will.”
Zanaya well understood that; she remembered how the archangels of old had watched Alexander like a hawk before his ascension. She might’ve been young at the time, but she’d had eyes and ears. And he’d been her fascination and her obsession.
“So,” Jessamy had concluded, “it’s highly unlikely that either has woken since they went into Sleep.”
Zanaya had turned off the screen with a jolt of hope. She wasn’t used to this new way of communicating, and her mind had trouble with the concept, but she couldn’t argue about its usefulness.
So much so that she’d asked Nala to teach her how to use it. It had taken effort, but she could now make direct calls without assistance. She input her favorite person’s name, and soon enough, his face—harsh and handsome and beloved—filled the screen.
“I hate this device,” Alexander muttered with a scowl.
“That’s because you’re an old man, General.”
Narrowed eyes. “I see the twins are being their usual good influence.”
Laughter dancing inside her, she pressed her palm to the screen.
He pressed his hand to the screen on his side, his expression softer. “You have something on your mind, Zani.”
Oh, he knew her so well. Dropping her hand after their silent and familiar communion, she said, “Do you know if an archangel can wake a person with whom they have a bond?”
“You’re thinking of Aureline and Meher.”
“It’d be good to have my second and third with me as I rebuild my court. The twins have told me that they don’t feel suited to the responsibility of those positions, and I have to agree with them—they’re brilliant squadron commanders and that’s their strength.”
Alexander sighed. “You’ve stolen them, haven’t you?”
“I’m sure I have no idea what you mean. Oh, you’ll be getting a visit from a courier soon.”
Arms folded but lips curved, he said, “I can’t answer your question about archangels, but I can tell you that I was rudely awakened by one of Raphael’s Seven and his mate.”
Zanaya’s mouth dropped open. “Surely, you jest?” To disturb an archangel in their Sleep was a death sentence.
“No, it was needed. Lijuan.”
Zanaya echoed his scowl. “Oh.”
“But,” Alexander said, “in my case, they managed to locate my place of Sleep, then yelled insults at me until I woke up. Turns out a Sleeper can hear such abuses when they take place right on top of him.” Amused laughter that belied his stern tone. “You must meet Naasir—he’s one of a kind.” His smile faded. “The only chimera in all the world.”
“He survived?”
“More than that. He thrived. Osiris would’ve been exultant.” Head dropping, Alexander shoved a hand through his hair. “But Naasir wouldn’t be who he is had he grown up under my brother’s dark care. The Naasir we know today was raised with love and in freedom, not tortured and starved in a cage; he’s a cherished part of Raphael’s court, and Raphael’s second may as well be his father.”
Hating the old grief in his eyes, and hating his brother for causing it, Zanaya didn’t ask any more on the subject. “I should be able to visit soon. The twins can hold the fort in my absence. And . . . I ache for you.”
His jaw worked. “I dream of you. Every time I close my eyes.”
Her eyes burned, her throat raw.
The two of them closed the connection without saying good-bye. They’d never again say good-bye. For the first time in their existence, they’d decided to put their stubbornness to work in pursuit of their love.
Stepping away from the screen with the urge to hold him close a tightness inside her, she thought of what he’d said. Because the thing was, she did know her second’s and third’s place of Sleep. She’d helped them create it.
“Will you help us find a place no one can disturb even should the earth tremble and split open?” Auri’s eyes—that familiar and beloved translucent brown—dull and bruised by the loss of her babe, a loss made all the more agonizing for how late into the pregnancy it had come. Auri had felt her babe move in her womb before her child went forever silent.